Annotated Bibliography: Video Game Violence

Bartholow, B., Sestir, M., & Davis, E. (2005). Correlates and consequences of exposure to video game violence: Hostile personality, empathy, and aggressive behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31(11), 1573-1586. Doi: 10.1177/0146167205277205

The article indicates that exposure to violent video games increases aggression. However, according to the authors, the effect mechanisms are elusive. The study reveals that violence in video games is positively correlated with aggressive behavior self-reports. The authors applied mediational analysis to reveal that empathy, trait hostility, and hostile perceptions, which may emerge due to exposure to violent video games, are partially to blame for aggression. The research results show that repeated exposure to violent video games enhances aggressive behavior through changes in personality and cognitive factors related to desensitization. The authors suggest further research to investigate the effects of short-term and long-term exposure. The article provides reliable information that will contribute to my research.

Carnagey, N., Anderson, C., & Bushman, B. (2007). The effect of video game violence on physiological desensitization to real-life violence. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43(3), 489-496. Doi: 10.1016/j.jesp.2006.05.003.

The study investigates the influence of video game violence on real-life violence. The authors discuss the research gap concerning the influence of violent video games on physiological desensitization. They make an attempt to fill this gap. The researches collected data in the course of the interview. They interviewed former gamers who played a violent video game. The interviewees demonstrated physiological violence desensitization. The research results indicate the links between antisocial behavior, pro-social behavior, desensitization, and video game violence. The study will be used in my research due to its valuable outcomes.

Dillio, R. (2014). A critical miss: Video games, violence, and ineffective legislation. First Amendment Studies, 48(2), 110-130. Doi: 10.1080/21689725.2014.950496.

The source focuses on the use of social science research and its role in determining various laws related to video games. An emphasis is made on the amount, type, and validity of social science research. The study shows that the claim that video games should be censored is unpersuasive. The author discusses the presentation of social science research by various state legislatures that support game restrictions. They tend to focus on the statement that violence in video games is harmful as it results in anti-social and rude behavior and increased aggression.

Although the research does not provide possible failure causes, it offers detailed information about ineffective legislation that can be employed in my research.

Ferguson, C. (2014). A way forward for video game violence research. American Psychologist, 69(3), 307-309. Doi: 10.1037/a0036357.

The article is an attempt to identify continued disagreement areas related to the research on violence in video games. The researcher highlights the necessity of moving past media violence debates and the unsatisfactory state of the current situation. In addition, the author mentions the ways of improving people’s reasoning in terms of violence in video games. The article provides interesting information and makes readers aware of the researches carried out in the sphere of video game violence. Therefore, this source will be beneficial to my research because it presents different views on the issue under analysis and it will contribute to the literature review section.

Ferguson, C., Hall, R., & Day, T. (2011). A further plea for caution against medical professionals overstating video game violence effects. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 86(8), 820-823. Doi 10.4065/mcp.2011.0359.

The article covers the issue of overstating the effects of violence in video games by medical professionals. The authors have conducted a review of the available scientific evidence. The research results indicate that the current data deny the harmful effects of violent video games on psychics and aggression. In addition, the authors discovered some inconsistencies of the data presented in other researches. They call on medical science to begin the self-correction process and stop providing information about the harmful effects of violent video games that conflicts with the available data. The authors provide proofs of their claims that can be effectively used in my research.

Krakowiak, M., Hartmann, T., & Tsay-Vogel, M. (2014). How violent video games communicate violence: A literature review and content analysis of moral disengagement factors. Communication Monographs, 81(3), 310-332. Doi: 00.1080/03637751.2014.922206.

The researchers emphasize the gap related to the moral disengagement factors prevalence in violent video games. Therefore, the study aims to fill this research gap by conducting a literature review and the content analysis of moral disengagement cues. The authors reveal that most violent video games presuppose the justification of violence, distorted consequences portrayal, and opponent dehumanization. They have also discovered that the factors of moral disengagement are often embedded in first-person shooters. In addition, the article provides a number of literature sources that may be beneficial to my research. The aspects of violence communication will be used to show the relationship between violent video games and real-life behavior.